Journey to the Past
by HayBales2011
Summary: Begins around 10 years post-finale. Chuck and Sarah have a little daughter, Lisa, who is the light of their life. However, a kidnapper bent on destroying their happiness takes her. Will she find her way back home? Not what you might think at first :P
1. Chapter 1

_**A/N: I'm baaack! How about that finale, huh? I'm sorry I haven't written in a while, but I was really busy, starting college and everything! My roommate and I watch the movie Anastasia on a daily basis, and I thought up a story that uses plenty of elements from it. Brownie points to whoever can find all the Anastasia call-outs! (P.S. there aren't any in this chapter :P)**_

Chuck and Sarah Bartowski were finally getting adjusted to being parents, almost seven years later. Their little girl, Lisa, was the light of their lives and they would do anything for her. They had quit the spy game for the less shooting-intensive realm of combating cyber-terrorism and Sarah's memories had been back for a while, thanks to the kiss on the beach. I guess an observer would say that their life was going well, but all good things must come to an end.

"Mommy, what's this?" Little Lisa asked. She had gone into her parents and was digging through her mother's jewelry box when she had found a simple charm bracelet that Sarah had had for almost over ten years.

"Oh, Lisa! Look what you found!" Sarah said, "That is a special bracelet. You see, it used to belong to your grandma Mary, but then your father gave it to me. It's very special."

"It's really pretty, mommy." Lisa remarked.

"Why thank you, squirt," Sarah said, giving the little girl a little tweak of the nose. Then she had an idea, "You know what, Lisa? How about I give it to you to wear for a little while?"

"Are you sure that's a good idea, honey?" Chuck said, walking in on the conversation.

"Well, it is a Bartowski women heirloom. It'll be hers sooner or later. Are you okay with it?"

"Of course I am. Come on, Lisa, I'll help you put it on." He said. Lisa walked over to her father, who clasped the bracelet around her wrist.

"Thank you, mommy." She said, giving her mother a hug with the biggest of smiles.

"You're welcome, sweetie. Now come on, it's time for bed."

"Aww, mom! Five more minutes?"

"You asked for five more minutes ten minutes ago. Come on, I'll read you a story, you pick."

"Alright!" Lisa said, running into her room to pick out a storybook to read. She loved reading with her mom. Sarah would do different voices and accents for each character to help make the story more interesting, and Lisa relished every chance she got to spend more time with any of her parents. She picked out the story of Hansel and Gretel. By the end of the story, Lisa was beginning to nod off.

"And even though Hansel and Gretel had gone a long way and their bread crumbs they had left to lead the way back home were eaten, their feet still knew the way home." Sarah finished just as Lisa nodded off to sleep. She leaned over to kiss her sleepy daughter, then quietly left the room to go to bed herself.

Sarah woke up hours later with a start and the sound of shattering glass. Chuck was awoken by the shatter as well. They looked at each other.

"That sounded like it came from Lisa's room!" Chuck cried, and they both bounded out of bed, grabbing their guns they still had for protection as they went. They heard Lisa scream as they opened the door. The kidnapper was standing on the sill of the first-story window, holding Lisa firmly around her waist. He was wearing a black ski mask.

"You let her go right now." Sarah said menacingly, pointing her gun at the kidnapper.

"Sorry, can't do that. You see, this little girl is the only thing keeping you two from shooting me dead. I know you, Bartowskis. I'd prefer to stay living, thank you very much." He said, grabbing Lisa even tighter and jumping out of the window. Chuck and Sarah followed him, but by the time they could catch him, he had taken out and was out of sight.

"I can't believe we let him get away! A low life kidnapper against two, albeit former, CIA agents? Chuck, he has our daughter!" Sarah said through sobs.

"We'll get her back, Sarah, we'll get her back. Come on, let's call Casey. The way he said 'I know you, Bartowskis'…it sounded like it could be spy-related." Chuck said, leading his wife back home, himself fighting tears the entire way.

Meanwhile, in the kidnappers getaway car, Lisa was finally gathering the bravery to speak to her captor.

"Who are you, and why did you kidnap me?"

"You're a brave one, aren't you? Just like your father." The masked man said, "Now your father will come to save you, and I'll be ready for him."

"How do you know my daddy?"

"Me and your father go way back, kid." The kidnapper said. By this point, the car had turned into the parking lot of an abandoned warehouse. The kidnapper opened Lisa's car door and, grabbing her by the arm, dragged her toward the warehouse. In her bravest streak, Lisa twisted her arm to break free of her grasp. She ran into the woods that surrounded the warehouse. The kidnapper ran after her, but Lisa had enough of a head start and was bobbing and weaving through the trees. As she ran, she looked behind her and noticed the kidnapper was nowhere to be seen.

"I lost him!" Lisa said gleefully, "Now time to go ho—whoa!" She said as she lost her balance. She had hit her foot against a fallen log. She fell and hit her head against a rock. She could do nothing but look up before her world went black.

"She got away from us, sir." One of the kidnapper's accomplices said, "But we found her about halfway through the forest, bleeding from the head and unconscious."

"There's no chance of her surviving in this forest, and the chances of her finding her way back to mommy and daddy are probably even less. That's if she's even still alive. She won't be a problem from now on." The kidnapper, Daniel Shaw, said, "Now we regroup."


	2. Chapter 2

**_A/N: Hello again! I hope you liked the last chapter! In this chapter, things will start to clear up in terms of what happened to Lisa. Please tell me what you think, and again, if you can find Anastasia references, extra brownie points :)_  
><strong>

**11 YEARS LATER**

In small home for orphans, the oldest of the girls, an almost-18-year old who had arrived about 11 years ago was sitting watching TV. On tonight was a special on local cold cases, crimes that have gone unsolved for over 10 years. One story struck her in particular- the story of a little girl, kidnapped over 10 years ago, of whom no trace had been found.

"Charles and Sarah Bartowski, parents of little Lisa, have never ceased to look for any sign of their little girl. Unfortunately, none have been found and the police have no leads. If you hear of any information relating to this crime, please call the tip hotline." The announcer said as pictures of a perfect 3-person family flashed on the screen. The little girl, the one missing, had blonde hair, like her mother, and brown eyes, like her father.

"Hey, Lisa, that girl has your name!" Annie, one of the younger girls in the orphanage, said.

"Don't get too carried away, Annie. I'm sure there are plenty of Lisas in Los Angeles. Besides, I can't remember anything from when I was that little. Lisa might not even be my real name anyway." Lisa said. She had basically grown up here in this orphanage. Most girls that arrived here were quickly adopted, but no one would want a girl that was found wandering the streets with no memory of anything relating to her past. It was just plain shady. She had become accustomed to the fact that she would be Lisa no-last-name the orphan forever. The headmistress of the orphanage, Ms. Shelton, came in the TV room, drawing Lisa's attention away from the television set.

"Lisa, I need to speak with you." Ms. Shelton said.

"Yes, ma'am." Lisa said compliantly, following Ms. Shelton into her office and taking a seat opposite the headmistress.

"Your 18th birthday is in a week. Do you know what you're going to do in the future?"

"Um…I don't know. I was hoping college, but seeing as I have no money…"

"You know what happens on your 18th birthday, don't you?"

"No ma'am, I don't."

"You become a legal adult. Your time as a ward of the state is through. You can live on your own."

"Wait, you mean, I have to leave?"

"I'm afraid so. But don't worry. I've gotten you a job in Los Angeles. You can work there and save up money for college. Also, I was able to get you a place to stay."

"But ma'am, how am I supposed to apply for college and get a job on my own if I don't even know my last name?"

"They'll understand. Until then, just make sure you keep the one I already got for you, alright? I know this is a lot to take in, but you have a week. You'll need to have all your things packed up by then."

"Yeah, cause I have so many…" Lisa said under her breath.

"What was that?" The headmistress asked.

"Nothing ma'am. I'll be sure to be ready to go." Lisa said. Ms. Shelton rose and opened to door to let Lisa out. Lisa was already starting to formulate a plan in her head. She was going to find her family. She knew they were out there. She knew they were looking for her. And now she would look for them.

A week later, with all Lisa's belongings packed in a small backpack, Ms. Shelton handed her the address to her new place to live, a little attic with barely enough room for a bed above a diner in Hollywood, where she was to work as a waitress. Ms. Shelton gave Lisa a hug (a first) and sent her on her way. Lisa left the gates of the orphanage waving to the smaller children that were waving back at her from the windows and calling out their goodbyes. Lisa continued down the sidewalk, all the while remembering her plan to find her family. She had no idea where to start. She silently asked God, or whoever was listening, for a sign. At that moment, her cell phone (part of the exit package from the orphanage) inexplicably fell out of her pocket and fell apart. She tried to fix it up as well as she could, but it needed more than just a simple putting back together. It wasn't turning on at all. She swore under her breath.

"Excuse me, sir, do you know of a good place where I could get my phone fixed? I'm kind of…new here, and my phone just went out." She asked a passerby.

"Sure. You'll want the Buy More. In Burbank. The bus has a stop right by it. Get on the green route."

"Thank you, sir." She told the passerby, and walked to the bus station. She sat down and looked at the small silver bracelet that had practically never left her wrist ever since she could remember. _The person who gave me this must have loved me._ She thought, _and if I can find them, I can find my family._ Her reverie was interrupted the loud screech of the brakes of the arriving bus.

She arrived at the Buy More and approached the Nerd Herd desk. A man with brown hair and brown eyes who seemed strangely familiar to Lisa turned around to help her.

"How can I help you?"

"Wait a minute, I know you…wait a minute, you were the guy in the TV special I was watching last week! They had a thing on cold cases, and they had a segment about your daughter. I mean, um…I'm sorry…" Lisa spiraled.

"I understand. It's hard to know what to say. My wife and I have been coping well with it though. So, what do you need?" He asked.

"Well, my cell phone is broken. It fell out of my pocket, and I was able to put it together, but I can't get it to turn on."

"Fell out of your pocket?"

"I know, weird, huh?" She said, handing the phone to Chuck, who turned around to work on it. Lisa's bangs had fallen out of place, and she used her hand to push them back into place. As the sunlight coming through the window hit her silver bracelet, it reflected the beam. This caught the attention of a certain Morgan Guillermo Grimes, manager of the Burbank Buy More, who recognized the bracelet immediately. His eyes grew big.

"Here you go, good as new." Chuck said, turning around to give the cell phone back to Lisa.

"Thanks. I hope you find your daughter."

"Thank you so much." Chuck said. Lisa walked away and Chuck got back to his work on the computer. Morgan approached the desk.

"Dude, how could you not see the bracelet?"

"What bracelet, Morgan?"

"_The_ bracelet. The one you gave Sarah when that weird guy was holding everyone in the Buy More hostage. That girl was wearing it."

"That's ridiculous, Morgan. Lisa was wearing that the night she disappeared. It's gone. She is too."

"You have got to get over that. Maybe she's been out this the whole time, just trying to find her way back."

"Morgan, are you trying to say that girl is my missing daughter?"  
>"I'm not saying that, but I do think that if she's wearing that bracelet, maybe she knows something about it. And how old did she look anyway, hmm? About 18? How old would Lisa be now?"<p>

"18…today would have been her birthday." Chuck said. Lisa, who had decided to start browsing the DVDs instead of instantly leaving, was beginning to walk toward the door.

"Well, if you're not going to say anything to her, I will." Morgan said, walking toward the girl, "Excuse me," He said to Lisa, "Where did you get that bracelet? My wife, Alex, has been wanting one of those for the longest time."

"Well, you're going to think I'm crazy, but I can't remember where I got it."

"My friend over there, his wife used to have a bracelet almost exactly like that one. She gave it to their daughter." He said, indicating Chuck.

"Wait a minute, him? The man whose daughter has been missing?" Lisa asked. Morgan nodded. "I think I should talk to him…" Lisa said, walking back up to the Nerd Herd desk. As she did, a tall blonde woman dressed in nice business attire walked past her. As the woman walked by, Lisa caught a sniff of the perfume she was wearing. She was instantly reminded of something, but the only problem was that she didn't know what. The smell was oddly familiar, but she couldn't place it. Then, as she walked up to the desk to talk to Chuck, she figured out who she was. The poor mother of the missing girl. Morgan walked up to the desk right next to Sarah, with Lisa in tow.

"Oh, Sarah, you're here too. Good. This is Chuck's wife, Sarah." Morgan said.

"Pleased to meet you." Lisa said, shaking Sarah's hand, "My name is Lisa." She added. The three adults looked at each other with wide eyes.

"Lisa, that's a pretty name. Are you named after somebody?" Sarah asked.

"I don't know. I know this sounds absurd, but I have no memory of anything that happened since before I was 8."

"Then how do you remember your name?" Chuck asked.

"It was embroidered, on the nightgown that I was found in. You see, I was found wandering the streets. The nightgown, unfortunately, got ripped to shreds by one of the nastier girls to pass through the orphanage. But, I still have this bracelet." She said, holding up the silver trinket, "I had it on when I was found as well."

"That was mine…" Sarah said, "I gave it to my daughter, the night she…" Sarah added. She couldn't finish the sentence. Her hand rose to cover her mouth. She gave Lisa a hug, Lisa all the while having a confused smile on her face. Had she finally found her family?

"Alright, I think we all agree that this is strange, and maybe I am your daughter, but I don't remember anything about you, anything about me, from when I was little." Lisa explained.

"I know how that feels," Sarah said, "I had an…episode like that too. Perhaps if you see something from your past, it'll bring back a memory."

"But the problem is, I don't know anything from my past." Said Lisa.

"Sarah, maybe if we take her back home…" Chuck suggested. Sarah nodded.

"Are you up for it?" Sarah asked Lisa.

"I set out to find my family. If this gets me any closer, than I'm good." Lisa said.

"Well then, shall we go?" Sarah said. All four of them exited the store and headed to Echo Park. Lisa rode with Sarah in her car, while Chuck and Morgan rode together in the Herder.

"So do you really think I'm your daughter?" Lisa asked.

"That would be the best situation for all involved, wouldn't it? You find your family and we finally have our little girl back."

"But what if it doesn't turn out that way? What if I'm just a random girl that happens to have your daughter's name and a bracelet that looks scarily like the one you gave your daughter?"

"We have nothing to lose. Our daughter has been missing for ten years. For ten years, I've been fearing the worst. We have no idea who could have kidnapped her, what his intentions were. He could have…I don't want to think about it." Sarah said, her eyes welling with tears, "No fear I've experienced or will experience will ever be equal to the fear I felt the first couple of days after she was missing. And believe me, I know scary situations."

"I haven't got anything to lose, either." Lisa said, "I've been a skinny little nobody for the past 11 years, and if this can help do anything to change that, if I can even have an inkling that I'm not alone in the world, that someone cares about me, it'll be worth it."

"Lisa, even if this doesn't work out and you don't remember anything, I promise, I will help you find your family. I know how it feels to be lost, without any memories. It was a…scary situation to say the least. I'm not proud of who I became for a while after that, but I can see that you're strong and confident. Even if I may not be your mother, I'm proud of you." Sarah said. Lisa began to tear up, but she turned so Sarah couldn't see. Lisa hoped from the bottom of her heart that this woman was her real mother.

Meanwhile, back in the Nerd Herder, Chuck and Morgan were having their own conversation.

"So do you really think this girl is your daughter?" Morgan asked.

"I sure hope so. It would be the best situation for all involved, I think. Do you think she's really my daughter."

"In all honesty, I would be surprised if she wasn't. I mean, what a coincidence, dude! That, and did you see how much she looked like Sarah? There has to be some genetic link there." Morgan noted.

"I guess so. Just to know that she's been okay all this time; that would be a big relief." Chuck said with a sigh.

They finally arrived at the apartment complex, and when they parked the car, Sarah noticed the small backpack that Lisa had been wearing around her shoulders this whole time.

"Oh, I should have asked you, where are the rest of your things? I mean, if you want to stay here for a while…" She said. Lisa looked at the ratty secondhand school bag she was carrying.

"Um…this is kind of…all of it. I mean, we don't really get out for shopping much at the orphanage, so…"

"I'm so sorry. I never should have asked that question." Sarah said.

"It's ok. I understand. Let's go." Lisa said, pressing on. When she entered the courtyard, her eyes got listy and she starting gazing around. She looked at the large fountain in the center of it all, and she hopped up and started on the edge of it.

"I think…I think…" She said hesitantly, "I think I remember this. I used to walk around the edge of this fountain. One time, dad came by and scared me and I fell right in!" Lisa finished. Sarah grabbed Chuck's hand and gripped it tightly.

"That's right. Lisa used to do that all the time. I remember Chuck carrying her in all wet. She…you…were shivering." Sarah said.

"I remember…there was another little girl…she laughed for a little bit, but then she helped me up out of the water."

"That would be Clara." Chuck said, "Cousin." He clarified. At that moment, as if on cue, a girl that looked only a couple of years older than Lisa stepped out of an apartment across the courtyard.

"I had to see if what I was hearing was true!" She said, "Wow…she does look like her, doesn't she?"

"She is her." Sarah said, looking at Lisa, "She remembered the fountain, and falling in." Clara yelped, and threw her arms around Lisa.

"Ooh, sorry, I forgot…you probably don't remember me. I'm Clara. Your cousin." She clarified. A couple exited the same apartment Clara had. The lady had long brunette hair and brown eyes, and the husband had blonde hair, blue eyes, and rock-hard abs.

"Oh my god. It really is her, isn't it?" Ellie said, upon inspecting Lisa closer. The Woodcombs had decided to move back to Burbank upon learning of their niece's disappearance to help in the search. As it had been ten years, they had given up almost all hope of finding the lost girl. But now that she was standing there, as plain as the noses on their faces, they had no idea what to say.

"Let's go inside. I want to show you something." Sarah said, taking Lisa's hand. She led her inside the apartment, and more specifically, to a door that had been closed for 11 years. The Bartowskis and the Woodcombs all gathered around the door.

"Is this…my room?" Lisa asked. Chuck nodded.

"We haven't been inside ever since you went missing. We couldn't bear to even think that you weren't going to be coming back. Then, you know, we decided to keep it as a sort of…memorial. But you're here now, so go ahead and open the door." Chuck said. Lisa sighed, then put her hand on the knob. She turned it and opened the door with the creak of 11 years of disuse. She walked inside. A fine layer of dust covered everything, and as she walked around, she brushed dust off of different objects that were typical in a little girl's room: Disney princess dolls, storybooks on the bookshelf, even a small gilded music box. However commonplace these things may have seemed, they seemed like echoes of a distant past to Lisa. Lisa paused when she saw the storybook that was still sitting on the night table. She brushed the dust off of it, and read the title: Hansel and Gretel.

"Their feet still knew the way home…" She recited. She began to cry. After eleven years of hoping and wishing, she had finally found her family.


	3. Chapter 3

_**A/N: Sorry it took so long! Again, school has been taking over my life lately :P You didn't think the story was over, did you? What will happen when Shaw finds out the kid he kidnapped is actually alive? **_

"And now for some good news," The news reporter said on a television inside a dark hideout somewhere in Los Angeles, "Lisa Bartowski, originally reported missing over ten years ago and presumed dead, has indeed been found alive. Suffering from a case of amnesia, she somehow, by a stroke of chance, was able to find her way home. It truly is a touching story, and we'll have full details at nine." The reporter continued. Shaw turned the TV off, angered by what he had just heard.

"I can't believe it…she's…alive?" He muttered to himself.

"Her memory's gone though, boss." One of his henchman said, "She doesn't remember a thing."

"She remembers plenty. Listen. I'm betting everything she sees in that house brings back some sort of memory. It won't be long before she remembers she she's seen my face."

"But, boss, how will she remember what you look like if she doesn't see you?"

"It doesn't matter. She's seen my face. If she says something to her parents, then it's only a matter of time before they come for me. The girl has to die."

"Don't you think this is a bit…overboard, boss?"

"No. She can't reveal that I'm behind this. The sweet revenge that I'll get by tearing away Chuck and Sarah's adorable little happy ending will just be a happy side-effect." Shaw said with a sinister smile.

* * *

><p>Back at the Bartowski residence, Lisa had a confession to make.<p>

"Mom, dad? What happened with that window in my room? Whenever I look at it, for some reason, I feel scared." Lisa admitted.

"That's where…the kidnapper came in." Chuck told her.

"Did they ever find him?" Lisa asked. Her parents shook their heads.

"He was too fast for us. Which is saying something." Sarah said.

"My kidnapper is still out there?" Lisa asked, "We have to find him."

"Believe me, we've tried. There's simply no evidence of anything. He was smart. There were no traces of him anywhere, and when he got away from us, all we had seen of him were his eyes. He was wearing a mask." Chuck said. They had done everything in their power to track down the kidnapper, but even with their spy abilities, they could come up with nothing.

"Let's not let that get us down today. I'm just so glad to have you back!" Sarah said, embracing her daughter.

"I'm glad to be back. It may take a while for this place to seem like home and get memories to come back, but at least I finally have a place to call home, and people to call family." Lisa said with a smile.

"Hey, maybe we should have a party!" Clara suggested, "We can have it in the courtyard. We can invite people from the complex and the Buy More. Maybe seeing people she knew before she got kidnapped will help bring back Lisa's memories."

"That's a good idea, Clara," Sarah said, "But what if the kidnapper finds out about it and comes back to finish what he started?"

"Honey, we'll be there." Chuck said, "And so will Casey." He added, giving a knowing glance to Sarah. They were still spies, after all, and could handle guns and hand-to-hand combat if it came to that.

"And if he is still out there, do you think he'd strike in the middle of a party full of people?" Lisa said.

"I guess you're right." Sarah said. The rest of the day, they made up flyers, invitations, and started planning the party.

* * *

><p>"How cute. They're going to have a coming-home party for the little princess…" Shaw spat, watching the newest report on what seemed to be becoming the story of the decade. "It's enough to make me sick."<p>

"Sir, what do you have against this family anyway?"

"She ruined my life. She took the only thing I had of value in this world. He killed me."

"He…killed you?"

"Before the ring found me and brought me back. I was just about to get my revenge on the blonde, then he came along to save her. I told him to get to her, he had to kill me."

"In all honesty, sir, it kind of sounded like you were asking for it…" The henchman said. Shaw put his hands to his throat, "Alright, alright, I get it…" He choked out. Shaw released his grip.

"I'll make my strike the day of the party. We'll get all of them in one fell swoop."

* * *

><p>It was finally the day of the party. Lisa woke up in her room that, with all the dust gone, was letting the morning sunlight illuminate it like it hadn't been in 11 years. She awoke with a smile on her face. She went into the kitchen, where her mother and father were making breakfast. The Woodcombs, Morgan, and Alex were coming over to help set up for the party, and Chuck and Sarah were making pancakes for everybody.<p>

"Good morning, Lisa." Chuck said cheerfully, "Go ahead and get ready, the pancakes are almost done!"

"Alright, dad." Lisa replied, heading to the bathroom to start the getting-ready process. She opened the door, and what she saw made her scream. A man with sleek black hair and dark eyes was staring at her. He had a gun, and had it pointed at her heart. She saw a menacing smile come over the man's face, followed by an explosion and a bright flash of light.

Lisa woke up with a start. The day that had just begun was like the beginning of her dream, bright and cheerful. But the ending of her dream still haunted her. Who was the man? Could it possibly be the man that had kidnapped her over ten years ago? She walked into the kitchen and her parents were making pancakes, just as in the dream.

"Good morning," Sarah greeted, "How did you sleep?" She asked.

"Actually not that great. I had a really bad dream. I think my kidnapper was in it." Lisa said. Sarah's eyes grew wide.

"And what did he look like?" Chuck asked.

"Well, he had black slicked-back hair and dark eyes. He had a gun with him, and in the dream he shot me. I don't know what it means, but it's scary." She said.

"Sarah, does that sound like someone we know?" Chuck asked. Sarah nodded. A look of realization crossed their faces, as a look of confusion cross Lisa's.

"How could we not of thought of this before? It all makes sense now. Of course Shaw would be sick enough to kidnap a seven-year-old just to get at us." Sarah said.

"Um, guys…you're being really cryptic here. What's going on? Who's this Shaw guy?" Lisa asked.

"Our arch-enemy." Chuck said.

"Arch-enemy? Dad, that sounds a bit extreme. It's not like you're a superhero or anything."

"There's something we have to tell you, Lisa." Sarah said.

"Oh my god. You guys really are superheroes." Lisa said. Sarah, even with the tenseness of the situation, couldn't help but let out a little giggle.

"No, not in the traditional sense of the term…we're spies, Lisa." Chuck said, "And Shaw used to be a member of our team, until the bad guys got a hold of him. He tried to kill your mother in Paris, and of course, we stopped him. But then he pops up again out of the blue a couple of months later, and then a couple of years later. I guess he came back again that night."

"But why would he want me? Why didn't he come and kill you guys when it seemed like he had a chance?"

"Shaw is obsessed with revenge. He wants us to feel pain, not simply kill us. He knew that if he kidnapped you he would cause us pain. He was probably planning in using you as leverage, to get us to surrender to him in exchange for letting you go." Sarah explained.

"What if he knows that I'm still alive? I mean, I must have escaped him when I was little, then hit my head or did something to lose my memory. That might be enough to make him want to get at me."

"Maybe, but there's no way he could know that you're alive. He hasn't found you yet, has he?" Chuck said.

"You're probably right. If he hasn't found me by now, then maybe he's not looking." Lisa said.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, in Shaw's underground hideout, he was loading up with guns and weapons. When he finished, he gave a sinister smile as he twisted on his old wedding ring.<p>

"I can't wait to see their faces when they realize that I'm behind this." He said.

"Boss, don't you think you're going a bit overboard with all this? I mean, she is just a kid…" His assistant said.

"This isn't about her. This is about her parents. Let's go." Shaw said. The assistant let out a heavy sigh, and then reluctantly followed Shaw out of the base. All hell was about to break loose.


	4. Chapter 4

_**A/N: So, I'm pretty much stupid. I made a mistake with a rewrite, so I went back and replaced the chapter 2 that I should have posted, so if it didn't make sense to you, then it was my fault and you should reread it now. This is by far the longest and most action-packed chapter, so buckle your seatbelts!**_

Meanwhile, back in Echo Park, preparations were in full swing for the party later that night. Morgan and Alex were helping put up the twinkle lights in the courtyard, Chuck and Devon were moving tables and chairs out into the space, and Ellie, Sarah, Lisa and Clara were busy cooking in the kitchen. While they were working, someone new entered the courtyard. Lisa just happened to look out the window at this point, and she stopped at what she saw.

"Who's that?" She asked her cousin, Clara.

"That would be Dylan Hart. You know, you two used to play together when you were little. Whenever mom, dad and I would visit, you two would be inseparable. He's cute, right?" Clara said. Lisa silently agreed.

"Hi, Dylan." Lisa heard Alex call.

"Hi, Mrs. Grimes. Do you need some help with that?" He asked, using his extra height to help Alex string a strand of lights higher up on the wall, "You guys are having a party out here? What for?"

"Lisa's back, dude." Morgan said, "Don't you watch the news?" Dylan's eyes grew wide.

"She's…back?"

"Yeah, she's in Chuck and Sarah's apartment helping with the food right now." Alex said. Dylan went immediately to the door and knocked on it.

"Go get it." Clara said to Lisa with a smile. Lisa smiled back, and went to open the door. As she did, Dylan's eyes widened. Standing in front of him was the one and only Lisa Bartowski, back from the (presumed) dead.

"Lisa…is that really you?" He asked, still not entirely believing it.

"Well, last time I checked, yeah, it's me."

"Dylan, hi!" Sarah exclaimed, coming to the door, "Are you going to come to the party tonight? I sent your mom an invitation."

"This is the first I'm hearing about this party," Dylan said, "And the first I'm hearing about Lisa being back. This is great! Remember how we would use to play together?"

"Actually, no I don't." Lisa said, "Somehow, getting away from my kidnapper, I lost my memory. That's why I haven't been home the past ten years. I just needed a bit of a memory boost to remember who I was."

"Oh, well, I guess that beats the alternative. Everybody thought you were dead, you know."

"Yeah, I've been told." Lisa said. As she said this, a woman came out of an apartment on the second floor of the complex.

"Dylan, your father and I are going to get some dinner before the party. Want to come? Oh, hi, Sarah!" The woman said.

"Hi Kayla!" Sarah called, "So you did get my invitation?"

"Yeah, I did. Where is she?" Kayla asked.

"Right here!" Lisa said, stepping forward, into Kayla's field of vision.

"Well, just look at you! All our prayers are answered! We're off now, but we'll talk at the party, dear." Kayla said, turning to come down the stairs.

"See you at the party, Lisa." Dylan said, following his mom out of the complex. Lisa turned back into the apartment with a sigh. Clara gave her a smile.

"Someone's got a crush…" Clara chanted.

"No I don't! It's just…"

"You know, if I do remember right, you two got play-married when you were younger." Sarah said. This elicited an 'awww' from the rest of the women.

"See, Lisa, it's meant to be!" Clara said, "Two childhood lovers, torn apart by the cruel hand of fate, only to reunited by the same hand, but years later."

"Wow, are you an English major?" Lisa asked. Clara nodded.

"I had hoped she'd go pre-med, but what can you do?" Ellie said. They got back to work, and ordered in some Bamboo Dragon for dinner.

It finally became the time for the party. Lisa was wearing a dress for, as far as she could remember, the first time. Being a nameless orphan, she couldn't very well go to public school, but was instead taught by tutors that were hired by the orphanage, so there was no chance for any dances, or dating for that matter. The romantic realm was entirely new territory to Lisa, and it scared the wits out of her. She had felt butterflies in her stomach the moment she had first seen Dylan, and they hadn't left since, knowing that she would see him at the party. The dress was extremely girly, not exactly Lisa's style, but she felt like a princess wearing it. It had a poufy skirt, and was floor-length. True to her inner self (and perhaps showing exactly whose daughter she was), she had chosen to wear a pair of matching Chuck Taylor converses with the dress instead of stilettos. She was never one for heels anyway. When she was done getting ready, she looked at herself in the mirror, and, adjusting her dress, stepped out into the courtyard where she was met with much oohing and aahing. She met many people she didn't remember, and some that were important enough in her lost childhood that brought back some memories. For example, Jeff and Lester were there, and Lisa remembered enough to know to try to avoid them. There was also a girl that she used to call 'Auntie Carina', that her mother explained was a good friend from spying days. However, Lisa stopped when a gruff-looking, tall military-looking man walked through the crowd. The strongest memory since she first came back came to her, and she cried out:

"Uncle Casey!" She said, walking up to the man and giving him a hug. Sarah had explained to Casey that Lisa had lost her memories, so he was taken aback by the gesture.

"I thought you lost your memories. How can you remember me?"

"I guess some things are too important to forget." She said.

"Like your little husband?" Casey remarked as Dylan Hart made his way through the crowd.

"How can everyone else see that I like him?"

"Well, you're both the same age, cute childhood backstory, it's kind of required, isn't it?" Casey said. Lisa rolled her eyes.

"We'll talk later, alright?"

"Ok. Go have fun, you crazy kid." Casey said. Gertrude Verbanski, his date for the night, looked at him with a smile.

"Hi, Dylan." Lisa said as she walked up.

"Hi, Lisa." Dylan said shyly. Clara, in the corner watching them meet, walked over to the DJ, who since the party started had just been playing generic background music, and whispered something. The DJ nodded. Clara walked away with a smile.

"So is being here with people from your childhood helping your memories at all?"

"A little bit. You see those two guys over there? The Indian dude and the older man that's going bald? That's Jeff and Lester. Don't go near them."

"I know those two," Dylan said laughing, "I think I'll be fine. I'm not a girl."

"Maybe you're right!" Lisa laughed, "But the thing is, I can't remember anything from our childhood."

"Well, maybe I can help remind you." Dylan said. Just as the words exited his mouth, the DJ came over the loudspeaker.

"Alright all you lovebirds, get on out there on the dance floor." He said. A slow, romantic song started playing, and all the couples were starting to dance. Lisa saw her father take her mother's hand and lead her out on the dance floor, as well as Morgan and Alex, Ellie and Captain Awesome, and Casey and Verbanski. Dylan awkwardly stood there, looking down at the floor.

"Would you like to dance?" Lisa asked, hoping to take the pressure off of Dylan.

"Sure." Dylan said with a smile, "Was it so obvious that I was too nervous to dance?"

"Maybe just a little bit." Lisa smiled. They took each other's hand and walked on to the dance floor, "Just so you know, I don't know how to dance."

"That's alright, I can help you. If I can learn to do it, you can learn to do it." He said, taking Lisa in his arms to dance. "1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3…" He counted off as the two waltzed. Lisa was a natural at dancing, and picked it up fast. As the song when on, they spun around the dance floor. Lisa's parents watched from their somewhat stationary position, and smiled. They knew it. Dylan's mother, Kayla, was watching and smiling at them too.

"So if you don't mind me asking, where's your father?"

"Probably at work. He's always at work. I barely get to see him. He said he was going to be here, but he always does that. He always makes promises that he never keeps.

"Oh, I'm sorry…" Lisa said, feeling a little embarrassed.

"It's alright. I'm used to it. It's nothing compared to what you went through."

"The thing is, I know that this really scary kidnapping happened to me, but I can't remember any of it."

"Perhaps that's a good thing. You don't want to keep old ghosts from your past. They never bring anything but trouble."

"I couldn't have said it better myself, young man! Dylan, isn't it?" A voice from above shouted over the crowd. There were screams from the crowd, and the most fearful memories yet came back to Lisa.

"Dylan…that's him! That's who kidnapped me!" Lisa said. Dylan instinctively took a protective stance in front of Lisa. The mysterious man jumped from the roof of the complex into the courtyard. Chuck and Sarah came forward.

"What do you want, Shaw? You've already caused our family enough pain through the years. Where do you stop?" Sarah said. Shaw sneered. He jumped down from the roof and he stared Chuck and Sarah straight in the eye.

"Your choice. I can either take your daughter away from you again, or you two can come with me and she can stay here with her little boyfriend." Shaw said.

"Fine. We'll come with you." Chuck said. Sarah nodded her agreement.

"Mom! Dad! No, you can't do this! Let me go with him. I've been through this before." Lisa begged, "I just found you again, I can't lose you."

"We feel the same way. We lived ten years thinking you were dead, and now we know that you're safe. We want to keep it that way. We couldn't bear it if anything happened to you, especially when we could have prevented it." Chuck said. Shaw drew a gun and pointed it at Chuck and Sarah.

"Alright, let's go." Shaw said, following Chuck and Sarah out of the complex, leading them with his gun. As they left, tears welled up in Lisa's eyes. She turned to Dylan, who wrapped her in a kind embrace.

"I just found them…now I've lost them…" She sobbed into Dylan's shoulder. Ellie walked up to Lisa and put a hand on her shoulder. Lisa looked up into her brown eyes and saw that she was crying, too, "What should I do, aunt Ellie?" She asked.

"We have to go after them." Ellie said.

"It's my fault they're gone, and now I have to get them back." Lisa said, wiping her tears.

"You won't be alone, Lisa. Shaw is dangerous, and he's caused our family more than enough pain through the years. This time, we won't let him get away." Ellie said, "Come on, there's something I should probably show you." Ellie said. They walked out to her car and drove to the Orange Orange.

"My parents have been taken by a madman and you're taking me to get frozen yogurt?" Lisa asked.

"Just bear with me. I think you'll like this." Ellie said, opening the door to the frozen yogurt shop. She walked into the freezer. At this point Lisa thought her aunt had gone completely bonkers. What could there possibly be in the freezer of a frozen yogurt place that could help her find her parents? Ellie messed with one of the lights to the side of a door, and an interface popped up. Ellie put her hand on it.

"Identity confirmed- Dr. Eleanor Bartowski-Woodcomb. Access granted." An electronic voice said. The door slid open to reveal a stairway that led down into what seemed like a bunker. Ellie let Lisa go first down the stairs and discover the Castle for herself. She immediately pegged it for what it was.

"Is this…my parent's spy base?" Lisa asked. Ellie nodded. Lisa began exploring.

"Here, for one, you're gonna need this." Ellie said, handing a watch to Lisa.

"A watch?"

"Not just an ordinary watch. This helps you keep in touch with us. It's also equipped with GPS, so if you need help, we can find you." Ellie said, fastening it to her wrist, "Now, let's try to find Chuck and Sarah." Ellie continued, typing at the main computer, "Let's see, Sarah activated her tracer right when they turned onto the 401, and they're still moving…they're turning off at Burbank boulevard…they've stopped. They're only two blocks away!"

"Alright I have to run. Wish me luck!" Lisa said, heading toward the stairs.

"Wait, wait! You need one of these!" Ellie called. Lisa turned around and saw her aunt holding a gun.

"Don't you think it's a little much? I mean, I don't want to kill anyone…"

"Don't worry. It's only a tranq gun. It's the only kind your dad uses." Ellie explained. Lisa took the tranq gun, a Velcro strap, and strapped it on to her thigh underneath her dress. With a nod to Ellie, she picked up her skirts and went up the stairs. She ran the two blocks, her skirts gathered up in her hands, to a dark abandoned alley. Shaw turned around slowly. A menacing grin crossed his face.

"I thought you might show up. I hoped you might, actually." He said, "See, with you here, I can kill both you and your parents in one fell swoop. Kill two birds with one stone, as it were." He explained.

"I don't know what kind of weird, screwed-up, crazy vendetta you have against my parents, but it has to stop." Lisa said, "See, I believe that all people are essentially good at heart. I'd like to think that when I was seven, looking at you with scared eyes, you actually felt some pity for me. Don't you see how much pain you've caused my family? How much pain you've caused me? Doesn't that affect you in any way?" She pleaded, looking into Shaw's eyes. All she saw staring back at her was pure blackness, both of color and of spirit.

"No." Shaw said coldly. He drew a gun and pointed it at Lisa. Chuck and Sarah, bound and gagged and sitting in a corner of the alley, started to squirm and protest. Lisa drew her tranq gun and pointed it back at Shaw, "Ahh, I see you're a weakling too, just like your father."

"Weakness isn't physical, Shaw. Neither is strength. Strength comes from doing the right thing. So, I guess that means my parents are ten times as strong as you will ever be." Lisa said. Shaw's eyes filled with anger and he lashed out on Lisa. He came at her, not bothering to use his gun. That would too easy of a death for this little brat. Shaw easily overpowered her, and he had her in his grasp within seconds. He closed his hands around her throat, and Lisa had the too familiar sensation of her world going black.

"Get your hands off her!" She heard a male voice say. Her fuzzy vision saw a figure swinging down from a rooftop on a rope, and he kicked Shaw to the ground. All of a sudden the tightness in her throat went away, and she started coughing uncontrollably. She saw a flash of light and heard a deafening bang. Her savior was now lying on the floor, bleeding from his abdomen. Lisa regained her senses and saw that the person that had saved her was the same boy she was dancing with not even half an hour ago.

"Dylan!" Lisa yelled, running to his side. She looked around and saw that Shaw was still lying on the ground, unconscious.

"Go…before he wakes up…" Dylan managed to breath.

"No. I'm not going to leave you!" Lisa said. She went over to her parents and untied them and took out their gags. Sarah took Lisa's hands.

"Listen. You need to run. Get out of here. Take Dylan with you and get him to Ellie. She can help."

"No, mom. I'm not leaving you." Lisa said. She raised her watch to her mouth. "Aunt Ellie, we need help. Dylan's been shot, in the abdomen. He's bleeding, a lot. Come quick!" She said, pressing the button on the side.

"I'll be there soon, Lisa. See if you can find something to stop the bleeding until I get there." Ellie said from the other end of the line. Lisa tore off a portion of her dress and used it as a bandage, wrapping Dylan's torso in the blue rhinstoned fabric. He had gone unconscious, but he was still breathing.

"Touching, really." Shaw said. He had come back to his senses. Sarah quickly took his gun, concealing it from him. "I see you took this opportunity to untie your dear parents." Shaw said, "Go ahead; tell them to go. You should know that I have snipers stationed all around the perimeter. You can't leave this place without me. Alive, anyway." He added. Ellie, on her own comms unit, heard what he was saying. Already on her way, she quickly took out her cell phone. As she ran, she was able to send off a text message to Casey. _Everyone in trouble- alley two blocks away from the Orange Orange. Snipers surrounding, no one can escape._ She typed.

"I hope you have your phone, John…" She breathed, putting her phone back in her pocket.

Meanwhile, in the dark alley, all seemed lost. Dylan had been shot and was barely holding onto life, and there was no escape for the Bartowskis. Lisa, still sitting by Dylan, started sobbing gently, her tears falling to the ground. A light rain began to fall, and mingled with her tears on the pavement.

"Why?" She asked, "Why do you do this? Why do you take pleasure in other people's pain? Dylan was trying to save me. He had nothing to do with you. And now look what you've done. You're no better than a common criminal."

"I'm nothing like a common criminal. I run a very prestigious espionage organization. Who knows, if you hadn't have run off when you were little, you might have become my protégée."

"I would have never. I'd never be a traitor like that. You, on the other hand…" Lisa said. Shaw swiftly turned on her, grabbing her by the hair.

"Listen here, you little brat. I was never the traitor. The traitor was your dear old mother here. She killed my wife." Shaw said, dropping Lisa to the ground.

"What?" Lisa breathed, giving a horrified look in Sarah's direction, "She wouldn't…"

"Shaw, I told you. It was an assignment. I was a young agent. Naïve. I didn't even know her name." Sarah said.

"And you killed her? Just because they told you to? Mom, I have no idea what kind of messed-up job being a spy is, but I don't want anything to do with it. This is crazy. I'm done. Dylan will be safe with you." She said, leaving the alley in an all-out run.

"Lisa, no! Remember what Shaw said!" Chuck yelled. But it was too late. She had turned out of sight. A shot rang out through the night air, along with a frightened scream.

"Lisa!" Sarah yelled. She started running, but Chuck caught her by the wrist.

"Sarah, what about the snipers?"

"I don't give a damn about snipers. Chuck, this is our daughter we're talking about. I'm going." She said, twisting her wrist out of his grip and running on. Chuck followed quickly behind. When they were out of sight, two shots rang out. Shaw stood there in the dark alley in the gently falling rain, an evil sort of grin on his face. He had finally won. The Bartowskis were dead.


	5. Chapter 5

_**A/N: So, the internet was down on campus all day today, so I was able to write more of this story for you guys! If all goes well, I should be able to post the next chapter later tonight, but for now, please read, review and enjoy Chapter 5!**_

Lisa had frozen with fear at the gunshot. She let out a scream, then felt a hand cover her mouth. She turned around to see her aunt Ellie looking at her with a finger in front of her lips.

"Shh. If we want to get away from Shaw, we need to be absolutely quiet." Ellie whispered. Confused, she looked just to her left and saw Casey holding a pistol with a smoking barrel. Lisa let out a sigh of relief.

"Cover your ears." Casey whispered. He let off two more shots into the air as Chuck and Sarah came around the bend. They paused a bit, but with their spy reflexes, they were able to put things together faster than Lisa could. They sighed heavily.

"I don't think I've ever been more happy to see you guys in my life." Chuck breathed.

"We gotta go." Sarah whispered. They all started running back to the Castle.

"Guys, what about Dylan? We left him with Shaw!"

"There's no time to think about that now, Lisa. We have to get to safety, then we can make a plan to get Dylan." Sarah said, pulling Lisa along. Lisa ran with her family to the Castle, where they were able to regroup.

Shaw, still in the alley relishing his victory as the last remnants of the pair of gunshots rang through the night air, was ready to make his escape when he noticed the still unconscious Dylan on the pavement. Another sinister smile came across his face. He picked up the boy and draped him over his back. He walked out of the alley and got into his car, laying Dylan across the backseat. He drove off into the night, satisfied with the Bartowskis fate.

Dylan awoke in a dark room with a single lamp for light to see by. He saw Shaw sitting across from him.

"Wha…where am I?" He said groggily. He tried to get up, but he had forgotten that he had been shot. The pain prevented him from standing, but he looked down and noticed that he had been bandaged with clean gauze. "Why bother curing me.? You're the one that shot me in the first place."

"Well, you startled me. I wouldn't have hurt you."

"But you were the one that took Mr. and Mrs. Bartowski! You were gonna hurt them. And Lisa, too."

"I wasn't going to hurt them. You see, I was arresting them. The Bartowskis were spies, Dylan, and they did terrible things."

"I don't believe you. The Bartowskis have always been the nicest, kindest…wait, did you say 'were'? What happened?" Dylan said, taking a while to process the words.

"Well, I'm so sorry that you have to hear about this way, but, back in the alley where you found us, a terrible misunderstanding led to…"

"They're dead, aren't they? Of course, you killed them."

"I would never do anything like that. I was just trying to bring them in, that's it. I warned them that if they tried to escape, that I had snipers stationed around the perimeter…" Shaw said.

"So you did kill them. Wouldn't expect anything less from a heartless lunatic like you." Dylan said, his eyes full of fire.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Such harsh words!"

"You think I believe a word of what you're telling me? The only reason Chuck and Sarah went with you was to save Lisa, and then she came to save her parents. And you killed them. In cold blood. " Dylan said, "Which begs the question…why bother curing me if you're just going to kill me? If you think I'll somehow turn against the Bartowskis, you're sadly mistaken. But I guess it doesn't matter now that they're dead. Lisa is dead…" Dylan said, his eyes softening at the mention of Lisa.

"Ahh, I see. You liked her, didn't you?"

"I like her. There's no need for the past tense on that one. And you, Mr. Shaw, are not going to like this." Dylan said, breaking free of the ropes that were holding him to the chair. The pain in his abdomen was bearable now, the pain killers that Shaw had given him were taking effect. Having escaped, he punched Shaw squarely in the nose, allowing him time to jump through a window and escape. He ran, but he didn't know what he was running toward. The only thing that he cared about was gone, and the man that killed her was still inside that facility, bleeding from the nose, but, for the most part, unharmed.

Meanwhile in Castle, the Bartowskis were hiding out, safe in their underground bunker. However, Lisa felt anything but relieved.

"So you're saying that Dylan isn't there? Shaw took him?" She asked.

"I went back to the alley after we were sure Shaw was gone. There was no sign of Dylan." Ellie answered, "But maybe Shaw didn't take him. Maybe he simply walked out."

"He was shot in the chest. He could barely stay conscious, let alone walk." Lisa said, "Shaw must have taken him."

"Honey, Dylan is strong. He'll be alright." Sarah said. She looked into her daughter eyes and saw that they were brimming over with tears. "I know it's hard." She added, taking Lisa up in her arms. Lisa's tears fell on her shoulder as her body shook with her sobs.

"I had finally found you. I finally had a home again. Now it'll never be the same." Lisa said through sobs. All of a sudden, Ellie's phone rang.

"Devon! I've been meaning to call you. Yes, everyone's alright. What? He's there? Has he said anything about… Oh, I see. I'll be there right away." Ellie said, hanging up the phone, "You'll never believe this. Dylan is in our apartment. He says Shaw had him. He thinks you three are dead."

"That's good." Casey said, "Means that Shaw thinks you all are dead, too. He won't be after you."

"But he'll find out eventually. He knows where the Castle is. This could mean trouble." Chuck observed.

"He knows where the Castle is, but he can't get into it, can he?" Lisa asked.

"He got into it to release the Omen virus and try to kill me. I get cold just thinking about it." Sarah said, shivering. "There's no way to say that he won't be able to do it again." She added.

"We need to get somewhere safe." Lisa said.

"This is the safest place we can be, Lisa. We'll stay in one of the bulletproof cells. If Shaw decides to come, we'll lock ourselves inside. There's no way he can get through to us. " Chuck said. Lisa sighed.

"Great, because I'll totally want to live the rest of my life inside of a 8 by 10 cell."

"Don't be so melodramatic, Lisa. We'll find a way around this." Sarah said. As the words left her mouth, the door opened.

"Guys? I don't think that's Ellie. There's no way she could have gotten back this fast." Lisa whispered. Chuck jumped up onto the cot in the cell, opened the vent hatch, and lifted Lisa into the vents. He helped Sarah into the vent, and then he himself climbed up into the metal ducts. They hid as a figure in black came down from the entryway, descending the staircase. He looked around for a while, then sat down on the cot in the cell directly below them. Lisa, closest to the vent, peered through, trying to see his face. If this stranger was simply going to be content with sitting on a cot, then it wasn't Shaw. The stranger put down his hood and Lisa could see his face clearly.

"It's Dylan!" She whispered to her parents, "We're safe." Sarah shook her head.

"We can't let him know we're alive. If Shaw finds him, he'll be more than able to get that information out of him." Sarah whispered. Sarah began to crawl forward through the vents and Chuck followed her. Lisa heard them whispering, but couldn't make out what was said. Sarah turned around and beckoned Lisa to follow her. Lisa inched forward, making as little noise as possible. She followed her parents through the vents, going through tight contortions on the way, and the three of them eventually stopped in front of another grate. Sarah lifted it open. Chuck jumped down, then Sarah, and finally Lisa, who required some help on Chuck and Sarah's part as not to break bones in the fall.

"I guess I'm not quite a natural at that, huh?" She remarked, getting up from the floor. She looked around and noticed that the room seemed bare for the most part, except for a large console in the dead center of it. Chuck started pressing some buttons on the console. He turned to Lisa and said, "Smile." A green light scanned her from top to bottom, and a holographic image of Lisa popped up from the console.

"Wow, what is this?" Lisa asked.

"It's our spy closet. The hologram allows you to try things on before actually trying them on." Sarah explained.

"So cool!" Lisa exclaimed. Chuck pressed some more buttons and the holographic Lisa was wearing a jet-black stealth suit.

"What do you think?" Chuck asked. Lisa nodded her head. Chuck pressed another button and the stealth suit was brought out of the closet. "Put it on." Said Chuck.

"Can't be wearing a ball gown when we go up against Shaw, right?" Lisa said, walking forward and taking it off the hanger. She stepped into a dressing room to put it on. Chuck's phone rang in his pocket.

"Hello? Oh, Ellie, it's you. Listen, we have a problem. Dylan's in the Castle. Wait, what? Why didn't you call us before? Oh, it's ok. We were able to get in the vents before he saw us. See you later, sis." Chuck told Ellie, who was on the other line.

"What did Ellie want?" Sarah asked.

"She said that she was going to warn us about Dylan, but he was with her the whole time and she didn't want to let on that we were still alive. He needed a place to hide from Shaw. Ellie brought him to the Castle and let him in. We need to get out and get to the Woodcombs."

"But how do we do that without being noticed by Shaw?" Lisa asked, coming out from the dressing room wearing the stealth suit. She looked so much like her mother that it almost made Chuck's jaw drop.

"Shaw is the director of the Ring now. He has eyes everywhere." Sarah said.

"The what?" Lisa asked.

"The Ring is the CIA's main enemy. It's a tight knit organization, and Shaw was turned by them a long time ago. Once we captured the director, he was next in line. It has spies all over the world, and it wouldn't surprise me if some of them are posted right outside the Orange Orange. That would be why Dylan would have been dressed like that when he came through the doors." Sarah explained.

"Well, maybe we can do the same thing to get out of here." Lisa suggested.

"Lisa, if Shaw is after Dylan like he is, how much more would he be wanting to get to us?"

"But he doesn't know we're alive. That gives us an advantage. Shaw and his men won't be expecting us to walk out the door." Lisa said.

"You know what, you're right. We just need some good disguises." Chuck said. He then went back to pressing buttons on the console, bringing up Sarah's virtual image and his own right next to Lisa's.

Meanwhile, mere meters away, Dylan was sitting on the cot in the middle of the Castle, painfully bored. There was nothing to do but think of her. The girl he had known long ago that he had just found again. And now he would never see her again. He thought of Mr. and Mrs. Bartowski, the nice couple that lived just below him and his parents. They had always been so nice. Even after Lisa went missing, they never seemed down or depressed; from the outside at least. Now they were gone. The Woodcombs would probably move away, too, seeing as they had nothing left here anymore. Clara and Dylan had been close, like brother and sister, ever since they moved back to Burbank when Clara was around 9 years old. Now they would move and be gone as well. _Maybe I'm getting a little carried away_, Dylan thought, _It's not like we were actually going out or something._ But he silently wished that somehow Lisa had managed to escape and was still alive somewhere, but he knew that it couldn't have happened. How could she have outrun snipers? And now, it seemed like he too was delaying the inevitable. Why bother trying to save himself?

The two Ring agents assigned by Shaw to keep watch over the Orange Orange were bored. Why had they been assigned to keep watch for people that were dead? Was Shaw worried about a zombie attack? The Bartowskis were dead. Dead, dead, dead. The only people they saw coming out of the shop was an elderly couple, led by what they assumed to be their granddaughter, a young brunette. The three got into their car and drove away, again leaving the agents with nothing to do.

The elderly couple and their granddaughter parked in front of an apartment complex in Echo Park. They walked up to one of the doors and knocked, and the door was opened by none other than Dr. Eleanor Faye Woodcomb.

"Um..hello. Can I help you?" She said, opening the door. The elderly couple and their granddaughter entered the apartment without a word. The couple looked around the room, closing shades and making sure no one from outside could see in. "Um…excuse me?" Ellie said. The three visitors stood in front of her. The two elderly people grabbed at their necks, removing plastic masks from their faces. The wrinkles gave way to younger skin, revealing Sarah's sharp blue eyes and Chuck's deep chocolate eyes. Gray hair gave way to Sarah's blonde and Chuck's brown locks, and the granddaughter took off her wig too, revealing Lisa's own blonde hair.

"Oh, it's you." Ellie said, "I almost called the cops!"

"Sorry, but we had to make sure that we weren't being watched or listened to before we could reveal ourselves." Sarah said.

"I'm sorry about what happened with Dylan. There was no way I could get a message out without him noticing." Ellie explained.

"It's no big deal. We were able to get out of there without him seeing us." Lisa said.

"So what should we do? Now that we're out, how do we put the final nail in the coffin?" Chuck asked.

"Nail in the coffin…I have it! We throw a funeral. Like what we did with Casey years ago. Shaw will come because he's a sick sadistic bastard, and then that's when we'll make our move." Sarah said. Everyone's eyes lit up at this suggestion. They thought this was brilliant. They started throwing things together, and a frenzy of activity began, planning a triple funeral that would, hopefully, not end with anybody ending up six feet under.

Meanwhile, in Castle, Dylan was still alone. He was still sitting on the cot. He couldn't move. He had been through so much in the past couple of hours, and he had simply become numb. Then, all of a sudden, a face came on the plasma screen.

"Hey Dylan, are you there?" Ellie asked.

"Yeah, Mrs. Woodcomb, I'm here."

"Dylan, call me Ellie. I think we've crossed that line."

"Ok…Ellie. Any clue what's going on?"

"Well me and Devon are busy right now planning…planning the funeral."

"Oh yeah. I forgot there's a funeral after someone dies… Are you sure it'll be safe, you know, with Shaw still out there?"

"Yes, it's safe. Trust me." Ellie assured, "Just stay down there for now, and then tomorrow, we'll go to the funeral together. You'll be there."

"But what about Shaw? What if he makes a move?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it, Dylan. We're tracking Shaw and hopefully, he won't be a problem much longer."

"You're kind of freaking me out here, Mrs. Woodcomb…"

"Sorry about that. Would you like us to stay down here with you tonight?" Ellie asked.

"Sure, I mean, if it's okay with you guys."

"Yeah. I'll call Devon and Clara." Ellie said, stepping out of the room.

Later that night, the Bartowskis were alone in the Woodcomb apartment while the Woodcombs were spending the night with Dylan in the Castle.

"So, our funeral is tomorrow…" Lisa said, "How are we going to be able to pull it off?"

"We'll have closed caskets. Ellie will give a eulogy. Hopefully Shaw will be there by then. He'll go off on some rant, and then that's when we'll swoop in from another area of the church, and take him out." Chuck told her.

"And what makes you guys think we can do that?" Lisa asked.

"We'll have help. Our old CIA pals will be there. They'll bring guns." Sarah said.

"I just wonder what Dylan's thinking right now. I mean, what will he think when we come busting down the doors at our own funeral?"

"The same thing everyone will think. We've decided to let them in on our secret." Chuck said.

"Really? You guys are cool with doing that?" Lisa asked.

"Well, we've been skirting around telling everyone for years now. This is a serious situation, and it calls for drastic measures." Sarah said. It was about time that everyone knew. "Now let's get some sleep. We've got a big day tomorrow."

"Yeah, I have to be well-rested for my own funeral…" Lisa said, heading up the stairs to the bedroom. All three Bartowskis fell into an uneasy and restless sleep, dreading the day to come.

Meanwhile, in the Castle, the Woodcombs and Dylan were facing the same situation. Ellie was thinking of how she was going to give a eulogy tomorrow for people that weren't even dead. She would have to show the right emotions of course, or else people would catch on right away. She needed to lie. She needed to be like Sarah. Dylan, on the other hand, was worried about what could happen. He wanted to be there to say goodbye to Lisa, but he was worried about the funeral being out in the open. What if Shaw found out? He didn't want to think about it, but the thoughts would never leave his mind. He barely got any sleep that night, and neither did Ellie. Just like the Bartowskis, they were silently dreading what the next day would bring.


	6. Chapter 6

_**A/N: Hey guys! Sorry it took me longer than I thought to post this, and I'm sorry for the awkwardness of Ellie's eulogy (I've never had to write one of those, and hopefully I never will!)...this should be the second-to-last chapter, so read, review and enjoy! P.S: I need ideas for more stories! Please put ideas into your reviews, or PM me please! Thanks!**_

The next day, the Woodcombs arrived early at the church to ensure that everything was in order for the fake funeral. They had three basic caskets placed in a neat row in the front of the church, with pictures of the three Bartowskis they supposedly held on top. There were bunches of flowers on top of each casket, and the pulpit of the church was draped in funeral black. In regards to the spy mission that was to take place, the trap was set. The Bartowskis were to hide in the drop ceiling of the church, and when Shaw made his appearance, they would drop down and take him out, with the ladies of the CAT squad for backup. They all carried pistols, even Lisa, for protection. After everything was set, it was finally time for everyone to take their places for the big show. As the mourners shuffled in, the Bartowskis were able to watch from the drop ceiling that was their hideout. Sarah saw her friend Carina and her maid-of-honor Zondra take their places in one of the front pews. Chuck saw people from the Buy More take their places, including his best friend Morgan who, knowing that the Bartowskis were not actually dead, was wearing black to add to the mourning mood, even though he was still wearing his bright green sneakers. Jeff and Lester came in, wearing black Converse Chuck Taylors in honor of the 'fallen' Nerd Herder. Lisa saw Dylan enter the sanctuary with the Woodcombs. He was dressed in a black suit, as handsome as ever. When they had all taken their seats, Ellie stepped to the pulpit, dressed in a simple black dress.

"Thank you all for coming here today. I know that Chuck, Sarah, and Lisa would have loved to see you all here. I know that Chuck and Sarah had a tough time the past ten years or so with thinking that they lost Lisa, and the joy that they felt when she finally came home. Even though they were only together again for a short time, I know without a doubt that Chuck and Sarah…" Ellie paused, beginning to sob, "That Chuck and Sarah…died happy." She finished. Ellie took a deep breath, gathering herself. "When Chuck met Sarah, I could see a change. His eyes lit up whenever he saw her, and I saw the same thing in her eyes, too. They went through a lot during the first few years they were together, as I'm sure some of you know. But when things finally settled down, they had the only thing they really needed: each other. When they had Lisa, I saw the same light in their eyes as they had when they first met each other. They were so in love with this little blonde gift from God. Even when they were going through though times, they would come home to her and instantly, you could tell their troubles would be gone. Lisa had her own troubles too, as I'm sure you've all heard. When she came home at last, she brought the same joy to all of us as she did when she first made her debut into the world. Her troubles seemed to melt away as well. Now I know without a doubt that all of their troubles are gone. Even though they may leave our hearts with a gaping hole, there's some solace in knowing that. Bye, little brother. Bye, little sister. Bye, Lisa." Elle finished. Just as she stepped down from the stage, the doors opened with a crash. Shaw slithered through like the snake he was, glaring at everyone in the pews as he approached the front of the church.

"I have to admit, that was beautiful." Shaw said to Ellie, who had frozen on the steps leading to the stage. The spies in the room grabbed for their guns, waiting to make their move at the opportune moment. The Bartowskis were also waiting, still at their post in the ceiling.

"What are you doing here, Shaw?" Ellie bravely asked.

"You didn't think I'd pass this up, did you? The chance to finish the job?"

"Finish what job, Shaw? My brother is already in that coffin right there, and Sarah right alongside him, heck, even throw in their innocent daughter while you're at it."

"You don't get it, do you? I may have gotten a nasty bump on the head, but I can still remember you slamming that frying pan into my skull." Shaw said, drawing his gun.

"You're after…me?"

"And by the way, you forgot to mention something. Wouldn't you say that near the end of their lives, the Bartowskis seemed a little…shot in the back?" Shaw said, laughing at his own sick joke.

"The only back you should be concerned about is your own, Daniel." Sarah said as she and the rest of her family lowered themselves on ropes from the drop ceiling. The church let out a collective gasp as Carina, Zondra, and Casey all stood up, guns blazing. A look of genuine shock crossed his face as he stared into the eyes of the family he thought his men had killed. But then his shocked face gave way to a grin.

"Well, isn't this just perfect." Shaw said, "It just so happens that I didn't come alone today." He explained. He snapped his fingers, and all at once, Ring agents converged on the church, practically bursting down the door. The Bartowskis and their spy friends, however, didn't give up the fight and only tightened the grips on their guns.

"Unless you want to really end up in these shiny wooden boxes up here, I would recommend putting your guns down."

"Not gonna happen, Shaw." Chuck said, "Haven't you learned anything about us by now? Members of Team Bartowski stand by their friends, no matter how hopeless the situation may seem. Does Paris ring a bell? Or how about the Buy More?" He finished. Shaw gave a signal to his team, and they began to fight. Many of the Bartowskis' allies were disarmed, civilians tried to make a break for it, and Shaw made a move to grab for Ellie. Ellie used one of the only maneuvers she knew, and was able to disarm Shaw. Angry, Shaw grabbed Ellie by the hair and led her to the middle of the sanctuary, where the ropes the Bartowskis had used to drop down from the ceiling were still hanging. He grabbed the end of the shortest rope, and began to tie it around her neck. Ellie's hands grabbed for the rope, trying to find a way to untie herself, but it was no use. She began to let out choking coughs and her face turned a bright shade of red, then purple, as the rope tightened around her neck.

"Someone shoot the rope!" Lisa called out.

"It's dangerous, Lisa. We might hit Ellie!" Sarah yelled back, occupied with one of Shaw's agents. Lisa looked around, and all of the spies were too busy with their own fights to be able to work up the focus it took to shoot a thin rope. Lisa took her pistol, took a deep breath, and aimed. The split second it took for the bullet to reach the rope seemed like a million years to Lisa, and to Ellie, whose life depended on it. A Ring agent grabbed Lisa by the shoulder and turned her around before she was able to see the effects of her bullet cutting the rope and setting Ellie free. Shaw turned and looked in shock at Lisa, who simply smiled. By the time Shaw turned around to recapture Ellie, she had disappeared into the commotion of the fight.

The Bartowskis and their friends, despite being outnumbered and mostly disarmed for the duration of the fight, managed to defeat Shaw's Ring agents, and now the attention turned to Shaw himself. Shaw, however, still had a gun. He pointed it directly at Chuck, who put his hands up in the sign of surrender.

"Thought you could win this time, hmm?" He taunted, "The greater good and all of that? I guess you were wrong, Chuck." He finished. He looked around and noticed that Ellie was missing, along with Lisa. He didn't even notice during the commotion of the fight, but now that the dust had cleared, it worried him. Ellie and Lisa began sneaking up behind Shaw. They escaped during the fight and had made a quick trip to the church kitchen and had grabbed a heavy black frying pan, Ellie's weapon of choice. Chuck noticed his sister and his daughter sneaking up behind Shaw, and gave a slight smile in their direction.

"What's that about?" Shaw said, noticing the smile. He turned around and noticed Lisa, who gave him a cheeky smile and a wave before whacking him over the head with the frying pan, knocking him out cold. Zondra and Carina, still technically CIA agents and the only ones who could do it legally, put him in handcuffs.

"That's my girl!" Chuck exclaimed, enveloping his daughter in a hug.


End file.
